The invention relates to a data processing system, comprising a graphic tablet, a wireless stylus capable of transmitting a stylus signal which serves for the detection of a position of the stylus relative to the tablet, and activation means for activating the stylus under the influence of a wireless activation signal.
The invention also relates to a stylus for use in such a system.
Simplicity and ease of operation are important aspects of the user interface in a data processing system. Therefore, contemporary user interfaces increasingly utilize a graphic tablet and a stylus cooperating with the tablet in order to enter commands, selections or text. In such an application the stylus transmits a given stylus signal which is received by loops in the tablet. The received signal is used to determine the position of the stylus relative to the tablet and this position is used as input for the system. A combination of a graphic tablet with a display screen is described in European Patent Application EP-A 0 421 025 (U.S. Pat. No. 5,231,381; PHN 13.100). This combination provides a versatile user interface with a variety of possibilities for interaction. For example, the display screen can display a dynamically adaptable menu in which the user can indicate a given option by means of the stylus. Another possibility is the acknowledgement on the display screen of information entered by means of the stylus; for example when hand-written text is entered by means of the stylus the result can be displayed directly on the display screen in the same way as if writing takes place by a pen on paper in a traditional manner.
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/278209 (PHN 14.792), assigned to Applicant of the present Application, describes a stylus where the stylus signal is dependent on the pressure with which the stylus is pressed onto the tablet. The stylus comprises a device whereby the transmitted stylus signal is detuned in a suitably detectable manner, whereas the tip of the stylus slides into the stylus over a very short distance only.
A system of the kind set forth in the opening paragraph is known from Japanese Abstract 4-140818. This system comprises a stylus with a battery for delivering power for the transmission of the stylus signal. The energy in the battery is limited and replacement is cumbersome and expensive. In the known system the stylus is switched on by detection of a code signal which is transmitted specifically for this purpose by a facility provided in the tablet.
It is an object of the invention to provide a system of the kind set forth in which the operational life of the battery in the stylus is prolonged and which does not require an additional facility to transmit a signal for activating the stylus. To this end, the system in accordance with the invention is characterized in that the tablet is suitable, by way of a display screen included therein, to transmit the wireless activation signal as a consequence of an operational behaviour of the display screen, and that the stylus comprises activation means and is arranged to receive the activation signal transmitted by the display screen. The stylus is now switched on in the presence of a signal which is transmitted any way as an interference signal by the display screen. Consequently, no special facility need be designed and constructed, resulting in lower costs and higher reliability in comparison with the known system.